Pacific Islands Development Program, East-West CenterWith Support From Center for Pacific Islands Studies, University of Hawai‘i

Human Remains Found In Yacht Adrift In Tonga IdentifiedSlovakian man reportedly found with documents, foreign money

NUKUALOFA, Tonga (Matangi Tonga, Nov. 27, 2012) – The unidentified European man whose remains were found on a yacht 'JeReVe' together with over 200 kilograms of cocaine has been identified as Milan Rindzak (35) of Slovakian nationality.

Police Commissioner Grant O'Fee said today that U.S. authorities had advised his next of kin and they were awaiting instructions on the disposal of the remains in Vava'u. Arrangements would be made once the next of kin contacted Tonga Police, he said.

Milan Rindzak was identified due to a combination of documents found on the yacht, including his passport and information from the autopsy.

He said there were other passports found on the yacht but that part of the inquiry was being handled by the Australian Federal Police and U.S. authorities.

Money

Commissioner O'Fee, said police also found money in U.S. currency amounting to several hundreds of dollars, Dominican Republic currency under $2,000 and a few dollars of Polish currency under $20, that were on the yacht. The money was currently being kept by Tonga Police, he said.

The badly decomposed body was found by local divers on 7 November, who spotted the yacht on a reef, in Luatafito Atoll, Vava'u.

The cocaine, which is worth around AU$116 million [US$121.4 million], was recovered in an international police exercise and sent to Australia for destruction last week.